The present invention relates to a bicycle-type exerciser device hereinafter referred to as an ergometric exerciser.
An ergometric exerciser is a device which controls and measures work. The word "ergometric" derives from the Greek words "ergon" meaning "work" and "metric" relating to measurement. The majority of exercisers available today can not be classed as ergometric, since they are not designed to maintain a constant work loading. Many use a simple spring loaded wheel or belt arrangement to provide friction loading for a bicycle-type wheel which is mechanically driven by the user. True ergometric exercisers have been designed using purely mechanical techniques to accomplish and measure the work loading. A practical type measures torque using a mechanical arrangement called a sinus balance. This ergometer is designated as a constant torque type and requires that the user pedal at a constant rate in order to maintain a constant work load.
Another type of ergometer operates on the principle of energy transformation and converts mechanical work into electrical work using a suitable transducer. While additional sources of errors may be introduced with this method, there are many advantages to it. The primary advantage involves the relative ease of controlling and measuring the work done. In addition, an ergometer of this type can be designed to avoid the requirement for the operator to pedal at a constant rate. This type of ergometer is then known as a constant work type.
All of the ergometric exercisers known heretofore either are limited in the number of functions which can be performed during an exercise routine, or if a multiplicity of functions are available, the device is extremely complicated to operate. Thus, the use of all of the device functions is discouraged by the complexity of the operating controls.